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bonnie-barstow-of-flag · 3 years ago

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Killer Knightmares:

@avictimofthejazz an au based off a KR season 2 episode of the same name & knight of the drones vibe.

Dr. Bonnie Barstow is dutifully diligent with all of her work. She obsesses over even the most minuscule and trivial details to achieve perfection. It’s one of the many reasons she’s been added to the staff at the University of San Francisco under the supervision of the reputable David Halston.

___

It’s virtually unfathomable how much damage an ill-programmed microchip the size of a finger-nail could inflict. A twisted sense of insatiable fascination clutches a bewitching grasp over her complete attention. The tiny chip captured under the view of the highly advanced microscope was an absolute marvel with it’s bright ridges of gold along with it’s small valleys and backroads paved in a far duller shade of silver. It’s a coded maze that Bonnie can easily interpret. One infinitesimal change to the programming can mean the difference between life and death. Bonnie’s searching, seeking out the one piece of the prototype keeping it from functioning as designed. She could never and would never give the go-ahead on anything that could be considered dangerous. Even more so given the incidents that occurred because of Karr.

“There’s a call for you on line four, Bonnie.” Comes Halston’s abrupt half-careless words. Placing indelicate hands upon the slopes of her shoulders, he continues. “I’m starting to feel like your personal secretary.” It’s a gripe he made in earnest. He’s been, in no uncertain terms, telling her former associates to stop calling for months now. That Bonnie’s happier here without them hounding her. He delighted in being able to get her to refuse their offers to have her return. Of course, David hadn’t bothered to asked permission to make those direct assertions. He just did. Dr. Halson needed her. Even if Bonnie wasn’t fully aware of it, she had become vital to the success of his and Margo’s operations.

He leans over her shoulder to take a non-committal glance at her progress with the microchip. “It’s quite strange really.” He cryptically starts. The rest of the explanation failing to come as an immediate continuance.

Skeptical, Bonnie’s turquoise orbs lift towards her revered mentor while he speaks. Worry warps her usually beautiful countenance as she discovers herself clinging to his every utterance. Every easy breath hinged upon what would come next.

When her attention is fully upon him, he reveals against the shell of her ear all that he’d been biting back. “It’s a hospital near Los Angeles. A nurse Langly from Hoff Medical Center or other. She ‘claims’ it’s urgent.” There’s a deep trench of sarcasm imbued when his lips reach the word “claims”. He is well aware that she has no real family in the city. At least no one she should want to have contact with, given all the bridges he’s helped her burn. The remnants of her family were located in Boston. His eyes befall her with the great expectation that she’d pass it off.

Halston’s blasé indifference to the potentially serious situation doesn’t settle right with her. It lays like a load of swallowed bricks and mortar, in the formation of a thick, impenetrable, unmovable wall might; uncomfortably heavy. “I...” She swallows thickly, “I’d better get that.” The brunette rises from the stool she had been occupying and brushes past him. “It’s probably a crank call.” Arrives her half-hopeful utterance as she moves towards the thick plastic phone.

Sweeping a buoyant wake of chestnut barrel-rolls from her face, she lifts the receiver to her ear. “Dr. Barstow speaking. How can I help you?” She answers. Her lower-lip tucking between her teeth as she actively listens to the other voice. Twirling her fingers around the curly-q chord, she attempts to sort her thoughts. “Wait? What?” Panic bubbles upwards in her tone. Her once lax stance stiffens against the nearest wall. Her grip on the phone tightens to prevent it from slipping from her hand. “Are you sure?” A pause. “Could you repeat that name again?”

Nurse Langly patiently repeats, “Michael Long.” After a few seconds, she adds, “you’re his emergency contact.”

The warmth and color that usually could be found in Bonnie’s features drains as the gravity of the situation is rapidly dawning upon her. This was either a twisted macabre prank or it was a genuine emergency. Hardly anyone outside the Foundation knew that name or the history behind it. To invoke that name was to tug at Bonnie’s heartstrings. She has no other choice but to go investigate. If it was Michael and he was in trouble, she would never be able to forgive herself for ignoring his call.

Was it possible that he still had her number in his wallet? That Michael had never gotten around to changing his ICE list? If he hadn’t- why?

“Keep him there as long as you can.” Bonnie tersely instructs. Her heart skips a series of beats as she continues, “I’m leaving now.” With a glance down at her own delicate wrist watch, she calculates the amount of time it’ll take her to get that location. “I should be there in a few hours.” As she puts down the receiver, Bonnie contemplates ringing Devon and the Foundation. But she doesn’t. Not until she can fully ascertain if this is a joke or not.

Halston snags the frantic brunette’s wrist as she races towards the door. Throatily he demands, “where do you think you’re going? I didn’t give you permission to leave, and I know class hasn’t been dismissed. If you leave in the middle of our project, you’ll be costing the University thousands of dollars. You’re potentially destroying any hopes you had of a scholarship.” His concerns obviously rest with their work.

She wrestles her arm back from her professor’s clutches. Turquoise orbs darken when they lock upon Halston’s. Her expression is obviously deeply wounded and yet, out of respect for her mentor, she delays. “I’m sorry. I have to go...” Her words leave no uncertain airs about them. “I’ll be back when I can.” Bonnie is well aware that her defiance of direct orders could potentially cost her this incredible opportunity. Yet, she does not care! The Foundation has and always would be a primary concern for her. It didn’t matter how much time had elapsed since her employment with them, they were her family.

Bonnie is keenly aware that Halston is beckoning for her, yelling intangible words in her wake. She doesn’t dare turn back now with her feet already set on a steady course.

----

Only one thought prevailed as the brunette lunges past other students and into the parking-lot. Michael Knight could be in real trouble, and he needed her. She can’t fathom any set of circumstances that would require resurrecting a name that should have been buried. In her gut, she knows something is terribly amiss. But what?

Seven hours of the endless highway and traffic sprawled between the former partners. Every minute of that time seemed to conjure up a fresh, new fear as to what the explanation could be. Internally, she had been running herself through an extensive list of people who knew Michael Knight before he was the man she’d grown to love. Stevie was murdered. Tanya walker died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Vernon Gray and the others were in rotting in jail.

With the review of every case, came the discomforting realization that Michael and the Foundation were in the habit of making ruthless adversaries. Some of them were worse than others.

A startling thought does occur to her. Garthe and Elizabeth Knight knew about Wilton’s pet project. He knew that his father rescued Michael Long from that cold Nevada desert. However, Garthe and Goliath had taken a swan dive off a cliff. He couldn’t be pulling a crude trick like this. He had to be dead. Or was he? Worse still, could this be the work of Garthe’s vengeful mother? No. Why would they call her for help and risk the Foundation foiling another one of their wicked plots? They wouldn’t. Not even if they were aiming for the absolute annihilation of Wilton’s every dream.

Could it be the Chameleon? No. The man couldn’t have uncovered Knight’s former life. As far as the skilled impersonator knew, Michael had always existed as Knight. His previous life was a mystery. Or so Bonnie hoped it had remained an unsolvable riddle.

Every trudged up possibility seems to leave Bonnie with more unanswerable questions. She returned, time and time again, to square one. Frustration wells up inside of her veins as the brunette settles on the idea that Knight’s run into deep trouble on an investigation. This had to be a cry for help.

-----

Whilst Bonnie Barstow was not known for speeding, her foot increases the pressure on the gas pedal. The rev of the engine increases. Tires find themselves turning over at a quicker and quicker rate. All four heated rubber tires give a squeal of relief when she finally pulls up in front of the Hoff Medical Center.

With haste, she abandons her car in the parking-lot and races inside. Flagging down the first nurse she can find, she spurts out. “Please, I’m here for Michael Knight.” Entreating eyes catch the vacuous look to the nurses eyes and she repeated her words. “I’m Dr. Barstow. I got a call at the University where I work. I’m here for my - Michael Knight...” Ah, that’s where the issue dwells. She cringes before correcting herself. “Michael Long.”

That name garnered the desired knowledgeable reaction from the nursing staff. “This way.” The blonde nurse instructs taking up the lead through the sanitized hallway, armed with her clipboard.

“Can... can you tell me what happened to Michael?” Bonnie fearfully presses. She swallows down every fear collecting inside of her veins and penting-up in her chest. Having a breath catch in her throat, she manages to choke out. “Is he -- is he alright?” The concern taking up residence in the concentric confines of her eyes is genuine. Lord knows, she wouldn’t be able to cope with losing him.

The nurse keenly eyes her. The sympathy evident upon all of her etched features. “We’re looking at a mild concussion and bruised ribs. He’s lucky that nothing is broken. He must be in really good shape. Built like a tank that fella of yours is.” Any other man would have been in far worse shape.

Bonnie is too taken aback by the diagnosis to correct the woman’s assumption about her and Michael. In fact, she nearly misses the correlation as she is ushered into the room.

“He’s a real charmer. Your Officer Long is.” The nurse adds casting a wink in her direction.

Officer Long? God. It still felt anomalous to hear that in a sentence even with their extensive history together. She knew about his past. She was there the day Wilton brought Michael under his care. Until today, it had been years since that name fell upon Bonnie’s ears. Now, all of the sudden, she couldn’t seem to escape the shadow of the vastly unused moniker.

“Tried to flirt his way out of X-rays and everything.” The nurse actively points out. Her amusement with the fact is fairly obvious.

A perfectly manicured brow raises as Bonnie seats herself beside the man she knows under a very different name. “He really is. Isn’t he?” She fondly agrees. That had always been a part of the problem between them. Hadn’t it? His natural charisma instantly endeared him to almost every woman on the planet. She vividly recollects that he had tactfully employed it on more than one occasion to get what he wanted. He was kind enough to polish his act every time he attempted to use it on her.

Until the moment Bonnie cast her eyes upon Michael, it hadn’t struck her how intensely homesick she’d been for his familiar presence. Her heart gives off a series of palpable pangs against her ribcage as if it was sending Mores Code. Rescue was not bound to happen. No one could heed an unspoken SOSes. Could they? Despite her efforts to reign the unruly muscle in, it kept barreling ahead like an out-of-control freight train down the tracks.

Why was it that only Michael could arouse such chaos inside of her even when she had striven so desperately to move on? She tried to replace him with Dr. Halston and many other guys. Yet, nothing could fill that awful void that Michael left behind.

In that moment, with his large frame half swallowed by the hospital bed, she uncovers a dangerous revelation. She still loved him. As loathe to admit it as she is, those deeply-rooted feelings exist. They dwell in the undismissable realms of shadows where buried emotions and feelings are destined to remain.

Bonnie’s trembling hand gingerly brushes a dark-chestnut curl from the expanse of his warm forehead. The fluffy texture under the worn-pads of her fingers causes a familiar ache to awaken inside of her. “Michael, sweetheart....” She coos the term of endearment with a gentle insistence. She dare not startle him awake after the hell he’s obviously been put through with his injuries.

Her own lips bend into a shaky smile. “I’ve come to take you home.” His home? Her home? The Foundation? It didn’t really matter so long as he was back with people who loved and would protect him. As long as he was safe, Bonnie would never issue a complaint.

#avictimofthejazz #tw: long post #tw: long replies #you do not have to match the length #90% of this was Bonnie setting the stage #bonnie barstow #Michael knight #Bonnie Barstow x Michael Knight #Michael knight x Bonnie Barstow #this probably needs like five more years of editing cause of my strong meds but I am choosing to release it after spending all day on it

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neverhollowed · 4 years ago

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MANGA: Gad Sfortunato - Basso

REVIEW: Down Low by Parker St. John

Soundtrack: Son of a Preacher Man Artist: The John Does Album:

MOVIE FEATURE: Stone Fruit

QUOTES FROM MY FAVORITE BOOKS

BOOK BLITZ: Pinot & Pineapple Lumps by Jay Hogan (Giveaway)

BLOG TOUR: Blood Moon by Catherine Lundoff (Excerpt & Giveaway)

NEW RELEASE BLITZ: Splinters Of The Heart by Alyssa Rabil (Excerpt & Giveaway)

RELEASE TOUR: The Heart Heist by Elle Keaton (Excerpt & Giveaway)

BLOG TOUR: Darkness Master by Mary Rundle (Excerpt & Giveaway)

RELEASE BLITZ: The Elven King’s Love by Devon Vesper (Excerpt & Giveaway)

NEW RELEASE BLITZ: A Queer Little Book Of Tales by H.R. Harrison (Excerpt & Giveaway)

RELEASE BLITZ: The Offering Surrender by Rosary Deville (Excerpt & Giveaway)

BLOG TOUR: When Heart Becomes Home by Pat Henshaw (Excerpt & Giveaway)

BOOK BLAST: Love Him/Hate Him by Chris Bedell (Excerpt & Giveaway)

NEW RELEASE BLITZ: I Do (Not) by Anni Lee (Excerpt & Giveaway)

BLOG TOUR: The Boy Who Loved Wicked by C.P. Harris (Excerpt & Giveaway)

BLOG TOUR: Manchester Lake by Joshua Ian (Excerpt & Giveaway)

NEW RELEASE BLITZ: Various Persuasions by A.E. Lister (Excerpt & Giveaway)

RELEASE BLITZ: Unapologetically Me by Colette Davison (Excerpt & Giveaway)

BLOG TOUR: Age Of Mycea by Leigh Jarrett (Excerpt & Giveaway)

RELEASE BLITZ: Show Me by Neve Wilder (Excerpt & Giveaway)

RELEASE BLITZ: True Knight by Patricia Logan (Excerpt & Giveaway)

NEW RELEASE BLITZL Adorned In Blood by L.S. Barron (Excerpt & Giveaway)

BLOG TOUR: Love Practice by A.F. Zoelle (Excerpt & Giveaway)

AUDIO BLITZ: Starting From The Top by Lane Hayes (Giveaway)

RELEASE BLITZ: Somebody 2 Love by Maria Vickers (Excerpt)

RELEASE BLITZ: Wishes For Rohi by K.L. Hiers (Excerpt & Giveaway)

COVER REVEAL: Getaway by Casey Cox (Excerpt & Giveaway)

for reviews of boy’s love manga, LGBT+ books and indie music, visit my blog >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> https://neverhollowed.com/ <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

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maddie-grove · 5 years ago

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Little Book Review: Brazen and the Beast

Author: Sarah MacLean.

Publication Date: 2019.

Genre: Historical romance.

Premise: In 1830s England, business-minded nouveau riche Lady Henrietta “Hattie” Sedley yearns to take over her father’s shipping concern, but he seems determined to leave it to her ne’er-do-well brother. Now that it’s her twenty-ninth birthday, though, she’s resolved to take control of her life. The first step is losing her virginity at a discreet brothel that caters to ladies, but unfortunately Saviour Whittington, an underworld smuggler, disrupts those plans by turning up bound and unconscious in her carriage. Hattie releases him, yet she can’t untangle the bonds between them (which are made of lust and shady deals).

Thoughts: This is a very likable romance, yet I didn’t connect with it. The story never really kicks off; there’s a lot of talk about What Hattie Will Do to Change Her Dad’s Mind, or What Whit’s Evil Brother Will Do, but these issues are resolved in an anti-climatic way, or else put off until the next book in the series. The protagonists also have a kind of broken-record quality. It’s like they have mental catchphrases (Hattie’s is “No man will ever want me that way,” while Whit’s is “I am not good enough for a lady”) and have to use them in every scene. It’s great for characters to have consistent motives throughout a story, of course, but this is a rather literal way of accomplishing that.

It’s also a romance that’s rather overwhelmed by the hero’s elaborate back-story; he’s one of three illegitimate sons fathered by an evil duke who found himself without legitimate male issue, just a daughter (also not biologically his) whom he passed off as a son. Then he located his natural children and forced them to compete, often violently, for the chance to inherit the dukedom. Whit, his half-brother Devon, and the duke’s stepdaughter Grace escaped as young teens and made their way on the streets of London, leaving behind the most ruthless son, Ewan, to inherit the dukedom. Now Ewan is their enemy, but he and Grace kind of have a romantic vibe going on? That’s a lot for the protagonists’ self-esteem issues and business rivalry to compete with. Notably, some of the strongest moments in the romance involved Whit’s processing of his past--the lemon candies that he always carries with him, for example, or the memories of his mother.

Again, there’s plenty to like about this novel--Whit is a sweetheart, I appreciate that Hattie is a fat heroine, there’s a nice lesbian subplot, and the sex scenes are pretty hot--but it needed some refocusing and tightening up.

Hot Goodreads Take: Most of the criticisms of this book are pretty reasonable (repetitive, slow-paced, a little bit too much like its predecessors Wicked and the Wallflower), but I rolled my eyes at one reviewer’s comment that it wasn’t believable for someone as “fat and ugly” as Hattie to attract a handsome man. First of all, I doubt that Hattie’s supposed to be totally hideous even according to rigid standards of conventional beauty; sure, she has a running mental commentary of “I’m too fat and I’m too tall and I have a weird nose,” but Whit has a running mental commentary of “honey got a booty like pow, pow, pow/honey got a booty like wow, oh, wow” and “how inconvenient, even this woman’s nose gives me a boner.” Second, call me a hopeless romantic, but is a handsome man falling for an ugly woman really that high on the list of “unrealistic things that happen in historical romance”? I once read a Regency romance that implied douching was a reliable form of birth control as long as you didn’t fall in love. In contrast, a hot dude falling for even a truly weird-looking lady is (at most) uncommon, not impossible or a socially irresponsible trope. Third, call me a hopeless cynic, but I have met plenty of odd-looking guys who will only date stunningly beautiful women and see all other women as furniture. That’s not the sole province of the good-looking.

#little book review #brazen and the beast #books #reading #tw: child abuse

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truthbeetoldmedia · 5 years ago

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We Only Part to Meet Again; Farewell Unity Days

It’s been a wild three years, but this past January, the first “The 100” convention in North America had its final curtain call. Featuring an astonishing seventeen guests the (all too-short) weekend was jam-packed with fun and laughs. Created by Miah Bannerman and Leana Santos and held at The Pinnacle Harbor Hotel on Vancouver’s beautiful waterfront, there was palpable excitement in the atmosphere all three days. For many, this was their first opportunity to meet some of their favorite actors in person, for others, an opportunity to reconnect with friends both old and new, for all, an amazingly good time.

Returning to moderate the panels for Unity Days final year was Jo Garfein, co-founder of Cancer Gets Lost (CGL) and host extraordinaire. Moderating isn’t an easy task, but Jo managed to make it look like one, effortlessly handling fan questions and doing her best to pry a few Season 7 secrets from the zipped lips of the cast (the Spoiler Police never sleep). This year, Unity Days had a whopping ten (10!) panels, the first of which was the CommUNITY Panel on Friday night, which highlighted on the generosity of The 100 fandom and offered fandom a deeper look into Eliza Taylor’s Koh Tao Primary School (co-founded with Claire Wyndham) in Thailand. The documentary created by Pat Cotter (Eliza’s brother) was shown (and is also available on Koh Tao’s website here). Jo was also given the opportunity to talk about CGL’s fundraising efforts and more information was made available about other ways to support Koh Tao, including sponsoring a child. It was a great way to begin the weekend, but this was far from the last time we’d talk about charity at this convention.

The Saturday Welcome Panel (ft. Eliza Taylor, Bob Morley, Sara Thompson, Tasya Teles, Lola Flanery). Although, as noted above, no pressing details were dropped about the upcoming final season, the panel was still a great way to start the day. We did learn that the Season 7 looks promise to be exciting (and Bob Morley has been rocking a clean-shaven face after years of fandom debate over the merits of “The Beard”, so I’d hazard a guess and say they’re right on that.), we learned that Lindsey Morgan filmed an episode in lieu of Eliza this season for medical reasons Bob had yet to direct his episode (at the time of the panel) and that, after the loss of Abby, Clarke is no longer struggling with her friends. After a few quick fan questions, fans and actors leave the panel to grab autographs, enjoy meet and greets and take pictures.

The Bonus Guest Panel (ft. Chelsey Reist, Jarod Joseph, Chuku Modu, Jessica Harmon, JR Bourne, Richard Harmon, Tati Gabrielle, Lee Majdoub, Shannon Kook, and Shelby Flannery). So many guests and not nearly enough time. This panel opened up with a quick celebration for Tati Gabrielle, the talented actress (not just a spiritual advisor on The 100, but also a badass witch on The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina) turned 24 this year! There’s a quick introduction and then we jump right into the questions. There are questions about Miller and Jackson (Mackson are apparently “still there”), moments that defined characters (for Gabriel (Chuku Modu) letting go of Josephine, for Richard (Murphy) meeting Emori), before we once again parted ways.

The Sanctum Panel (ft. Chuku Modu, Sara Thompson, JR Bourne, and Shelby Flannery) did manage to give us a few new bits of information about what is perhaps the largest unknown still remaining on the show: Sanctum and its people. Again we are told the costumes are going to be something to look forward to this year (Chuku), we’ll learn more about Hope’s markings and what they mean in relation to the anomaly and that Russell will need to figure out where he fits in now that his family and his way of life, has been destroyed.

Finally, in perhaps what is my favorite moment of the convention this year, the Saturday Closing Panel. After discussing their favorite fan moments, JR Bourne, an avid supporter of The Grace Rose Foundation (which supports efforts to find a cure for cystic fibrosis), announced that he had a Season 7 “The 100” crew jacket up for auction, with proceeds benefiting the foundation, but soon decided to donate all proceeds to support disaster relief efforts in Australia . After an intense bidding war (something The 100 fandom might soon become famous for after a similar event at Conageddon 2 just last year), the jacket went to Megan for $3,700 dollars. Encouraged by the generosity, JR manages to find another jacket and secures a promise from Tara (the 2nd place bidder) for $3,600 dollars. In just 15 minutes, over $7,000 USD was raised to help Australia and it was an amazing reminder of the basic goodness of humanity.

The last day of the last Unity Days was a bit slower and maybe that’s because time knew it needed to give people time to savor this experience for the last time. Sunday’s guests were Lindsay Morgan, Tasya Teles, Sachin Sahel, Richard Harmon, Luisa d’Oliveira, Chelsey Reist, JR Bourne, Chuku Modu, Jarod Joseph, Jessica Harmon, Shannon Kook, Tati Gabrielle, Lee Majdoub, Blythe Ann Johnson, and Shelby Flannery. Both the Welcome Panel and The Bonus Guest panel were, unfortunately, hampered by the fact that guests weren’t able to share much about the current season, what that meant was, that for guests who were present on Saturday, there wasn’t much that they could add that was new. Despite that, the cast were naturally very charming which helped to create an overall joy. Unity Days has always been more about the joy of being together

Sunday was a big first for me, personally. It was the first time that I was invited to speak on a panel for my work. Myself, Yana Grebenyuk, Shanon Mizikoski and Gabriela Orsini were all featured on The Reviewer’s Panel (which Yana also moderated). It was wonderful to be able to sit and chat with some wonderful people about our favorite (and sometimes least favorite) aspects of this show we’ve all loved for so long. I even shed a tear or two! Unity Days was the first fan convention I ever attended, so to end the convention as a panelist was amazing to me. I am grateful for the opportunity and the experience.

The final panel of any convention is always a bit sad, and knowing that this was the final Unity Days and the last season of the show made it that much sadder. As always, I love hearing the “describe your character in x amount of words” portion and this is what we got for Season 7:

Lee: He Is Torn

Jarod: Somehow Still Alive

Chelsey: I’m Not There

Tati: A New Beginning

Shelby: Twisted and Wicked

Tasya: Never More Stressed

Jess: When’s It Over?

JR: My Family Died

Lindsay: Karma’s a Bitch

Sachin: I Lost Abby

Richard: Trying His Best

Shannon: Finding His Humanity

I don’t know about you, but I find myself excited to see what this last chapter holds. I’m so grateful to have been able to share this experience with all of you (both digitally and physically) one last time.

All pictures courtesy of Unity Days, via Shot by Devon

#The 100 #The 100 News

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moonsandmelodies · 5 years ago

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A Gothic Top 5

As The Banshees were my biggest gateway into my music obsession, I’ve had a fascination for gothic themes for many years now. As picky as I get with the goth rock/darkwave scenes, they generated and influenced several of my all-time favorite albums. To coincide with this Halloween, I’ve decided to look back on five of my most formative gothic, autumnal and/or 'spooky' favorites.

This is more about representing than building an exact top-5, so check out this related list and my Halloween mixes if you want more.

Lene Lovich - Shadows And Dust, 2005

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Lene Lovich is new wave’s wacky witch of the west. Anyone familiar with her distinctive polka-dotted voice will know this already. Shadows And Dust is the lesser-known piece to the puzzle. Despite coming fifteen years after March, Lene sounds more witchy than ever. She tributes the Wicked One herself with all the right gleeful camp on track 9.

Mixing non-forced cabaret drama with speculative themes, SAD is a goth-pop wonderland. SAD plays like a natural step from where she left off, unfazed by time. It never lacks a new trick to show off, be it wispy synth bells (“Ghost Story”), viking-like backing vocals, a grim synth-string intro (“Remember”) or an elaborate Dracula narrative (“Insect Eater”). To top this off, every song has a bouncy hook to get you nodding along. Altogether, it brings me back to Siouxsie's Peepshow. With a bold sing-along and mutant arrangement, “Shapeshifter” makes a worthy “Peek-A-Boo” sequel. And this is coming from a fanatic!

Lene sings like she's stirring a cauldron. Her voice wears a bit on louder sections, but I love her enthusiasm. Her wild-but-warm spirit hasn’t faded a bit, and her deeper, richer tone matches her themes. The sheer thrill she takes in voicing Reinfield on "Insect Eater" is nearly contagious. Sweeter moments like "Remember" show her knack for tender romance isn't gone either.

Even beyond her ‘prime’, Lene had so much more to offer than “Lucky Number”. SAD is a major reason why; the limited release has me wishing more fans got to hear it.

Grimes - Halfaxa, 2010

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In a Simpler Time (tm) before dating billionaires and romanticizing climate change with anime, Claire Boucher packed fresh creative instincts into a computer. On oft-ridiculed Halfaxa, she channeled cathedrals and haunted medieval heirlooms from what many critics dismiss as the lowest dregs in music-making: Garageband. Albums like this tell me they're wrong.

These technical limits and her isolation at the time informed these songs to unique results. Like many albums in this formative time for bedroom e-music, she’s alone with her thoughts here. Like any creative mind, I can lose myself in these thoughts. Naturally, the songs create unique emotional portraits, both vague and pointed. “Devon”, for one, is a raw, rejected love song all the way, but with other highlights like ”Dream Fortress”, I detect so many different feelings at once. It's sad nostalgia for that once-beautiful abandoned heirloom one minute and ghostly horror the next.

Halfaxa is a mind, a universe and a huge antique house. It thrives in surrealism and history’s shadows, but as other reviews stated before, you find human feelings inside. Her devotion to Mariah Carey helped; she stated Halfaxa was her attempt to capture the spacious, haunting effects of group church singing. I know well these vocals can be a bit much with the echoes and caterwauls everywhere, but I would argue the cowgirl-punk approach on Art Angels has it’s own acquired taste.

Halfaxa is ethereal wave’s digital-age niece; any fan should try it.

Bauhaus - The Sky's Gone Out, 1982

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Bauhaus’ messiness was the main reason I was a ‘casual fan’ rather than worshipper. With that said, Sky’s Gone Out struck me as a thrilling mess if anything. Beyond “Exquisite Corpse”, the songs don’t lose their footing in shouty jam-outs. They had more ambitious ideas and the experience to pull them off by now. They were maturing from the faux-edgy rambling that filled their debut.

Sky’s Gone Out stands out further as the one Bauhaus album where they could pull a true ‘scare’ on me. For all the hammy drama leftover from Mask, this album allows itself to build a stronger atmosphere, one that belongs in bizarre nightmares out of an arthouse film. Sky’s Gone Out has it’s own black-and-white, surrealist world like the cover art.

Complete with piano and sax from a haunted house, “Spirit” isn’t punk as much as a wild, dancing chorus of ghosts. The "Three Shadows” trio is a journey in itself, going from quiet goth-tar disturbance to an underworld's fairground waltz.

Despite everything, the album ends on a quiet, solemn note with “All We Ever Wanted”. It’s the gentlest song to the Bauhaus name. >Peter’s fittingly spectral highs toward the end whirled around my head for years. Fun as songs like “Spirit” and “Bela Lugosi” get, it makes me wish Peter Murphy showed this vulnerable side more often.

Cocteau Twins - Head Over Heels, 1983

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Head Over Heels takes place in the mountains and towering caves of your mind. As the first ’normal’ Cocteau album, this invented ethereal wave as we know it and pioneered the 4AD sound. I’d argue shoegaze’s whole color-wash approach began around here too.

HOH is a thrilling display for Cocteau's leftover goth roots in the more elemental context that would become their trademark. Liz Fraser’s voice settles a bit, sounding freer than ever as she belts, quivers and hums with equal strength. Her usual non-lyrics add to the enigma but her tone posesses incredible warmth and nobility here. The boldness in her delivery is surprising knowing her famous self-deprecation.

The spacious fuzz-guitar draws curiosity but insists to lurk in shadows. It’s a long, long gaze into said caves, where water drips quietly and huge sun rays peer inside. This is the moody, bewitching edge of nature in it’s full glory. It can be “Sugar Hiccup”’s candyland dream sequence or an intimidating divine beast emerging from it’s lair. What never fails to cast a spell on me is “Tinderbox Of A Heart”, a tie with “Fifty Fifty Clown” for my favorite CT song. it works like a travelogue for HOH’s world, where this mountain-cave turns out huge from the outside and all you can do is glare in awe.

Siouxsie And The Banshees - Peepshow, 1988

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As the 33 1/3 book stresses, Peepshow emphasized SATB's art-film interests. At this point, they were more a 'goth pop' group. Far from Juju's raw impact, then, but resuming the moody elegance that graced Dreamhouse and Tinderbox. For each goth-tar you have ”Carousel”’s haunted circus organ, "Rhapsody"s chilly strings and "Peek-A-Boo"'s reversed tango.

Martin McCarrick is the one who took the Banshees (further) beyond rock. Adding cello, accordion and other new flavors, he's one of their most unique members. The result is the band's last goth album, being a few years before "Kiss Them For Me". As if predicting this change, they went all-out with it. Peepshow has all the thrill, variety and surrealism to remind you why this band was so vital to the goth scene. Q gave this apt summary: 'Peepshow takes place in some distorted fairground of the mind where weird and wonderful shapes loom’. In a parallel to Goldfrapp's debut made in a cottage, they recorded these songs in a 17th century mansion. It's the kind of album that puts modern dark cabaret and Hot Topic rock to shame.

Siouxsie sounds like the suave and secretive ringleader in a freakshow. Songs like “Scarecrow” and “Rhapsody” showcase her refining flair for drama. As a whole, Peepshow finds this band at a special middle ground. Yet to hit the Top 40 with “Kiss Them For Me” but on their way, with their middle era's adventurous spirits intact.

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lgbtqiahistoricalromance · 7 years ago

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LGBTQIA Historical Romances with Artists, Poets, Thespians, Musicians, Dancers, and Bohemians - July 2018

Jalendu by Mark Andrew

- Set in the turbulent twilight of the reign of the Mughal Emperor of India, Jalaluddin Akbar, Jalendu tell the story of the socially awkward, but politically important young Prince Adinath and Jali, a handsome, spiritually inclined farm boy who becomes his bodyguard. Their unlikely friendship and love changes the fate of the empire. The small kingdom of Vindhyagarh sits in the Vindhya foothills between Prince Salim, the rebellious son of the emperor and self-declared Sultan of Ilahabad (present day Allahabad) and his powerful Bundela Rajput ally, Maharaja Vir Singh Deo of Orchha. But Salim in truth is no rebel. He is loyal to the power behind the throne, the women of the imperial household. The court nobility, led by the emperor's vizier Abul Fazl, see their power evaporating as the emperor seems powerless to oppose the wishes of the empresses or to act against his disobedient eldest son. They fear that when Salim become emperor, they will be reduced to mere servants. Abul Fazl vows that Salim will never sit on the imperial throne. Rana Jayaram of Vindhyagarh wants peace, but his efforts to ensure it draw his kingdom into a very dangerous political game. His youngest son has rarely left the palace because of illness and spends his time reading ancient Sanskrit texts, drawing and composing poetry. His only friends are his brother's widow and his old tutor. Jayaram sees a chance to extract his kingdom from danger by an alliance with the influential Kachwahas. An alliance by the marriage of Prince Adinath to a Kachwaha princess would not only tie Vindhyagarh to a Rajput house more loyal to the empire but into the imperial family itself.

On Wings of Song by Anne Barwell

- Six years after meeting British soldier Aiden Foster during the Christmas Truce of 1914, Jochen Weber still finds himself thinking about Aiden, their shared conversation about literature, and Aiden’s beautiful singing voice. A visit to London gives Jochen the opportunity to search for Aiden, but he’s shocked at what he finds.The uniform button Jochen gave him is the only thing Aiden has left of the past he’s lost. The war and its aftermath ripped everything away from him, including his family and his music. When Jochen reappears in his life, Aiden enjoys their growing friendship but knows he has nothing to offer. Not anymore.

The Reluctant Berserker by Alex Beecroft Review (Gorgeous writing, and an unusual case of a dominant musician and a submissive warrior.)

- Dark Ages England. Among the Saxons, a warrior is the highest form of human life. He dominates all, he yields to none, and if ever this mastery is taken away, his honour is taken with it. Reluctant berserker, Wulfstan, a noble and fearsome warrior, has spent most of his life trying to hide the fact that he would love to be cherished and taken care of by someone stronger than himself. Slight and beautiful harper, Leofgar, has the opposite problem – how can he keep the trained killers off him long enough to get them to acknowledge he’s as much of a man as any of them? When, in a panic, Wulfstan accidentally kills a friend who is about to blurt out his secret, and Leofgar flees rather than submit to his lord’s lust, they meet on the road to the pilgrims’ shrine at Ely. Pursued by a mother’s curse and Leofgar’s vengeful lord, they must battle guilt, outlaws, and the powers of the underworld with the aid of only music and a female saint. And if they fall in love on the way, there’s still that murderous shame to overcome.

Treading the Boards series by Tess Bowery (author’s Tumblr)

Rite of Summer: Gay men in a disaster!triad. Sex solves a lot of things, but actually talking about problems solves more. Not a poly ending.

She Whom I Love: Bisexual best friends share a very confused (yet grateful) straight man. Disaster is narrowly averted. A very poly ending.*

*Shortlisted twice for the Bisexual Book Awards, 2015 - Best Romance, Best Erotic Fiction.

That Potent Alchemy: Genderqueer ballet dancer hates gender, ballet, and emotional connection. Macbeth helps. No poly in this one at all.

Artemis by Jessica Cale (trans male hero/bisexual heroine)

- Actress Charlotte Halfpenny is in trouble. Pregnant, abandoned by her lover, and out of a job, Charlotte faces eviction two weeks before Christmas. When the reclusive Earl of Somerton makes her an outrageous offer, she has no choice but to accept. Could he be the man of her dreams, or is the nightmare just beginning?

Apollo Somerton has been in love with Charlotte for a decade, seeing each of her plays multiple times, despite being a man that otherwise keeps to himself. After Charlotte finds herself pregnant, she almost resorts to drastic measures, but Somerton rescuers her and makes her an offer she can’t refuse. But, despite his adoration and beauty, Charlotte knows being an actress didn’t prepare her for the role of wife to an Earl, and others will stop at nothing to keep the pair from getting married.

This is a sweet novella, with a frankly adorable leading man. Handsome and devoted, he has a secret, but love with persevere. Some aspects of the novella are a little far-fetched, but the love story makes it totally worthwhile. (Contains mentions of period-typical homophobia and transphobia. Trans male leading man, and bisexual heroine.)

25% proceeds donated to Equality NC, and 25% to the Malala fund

Think of England by KJ Charles Mini Review

- Lie back and think of England... England, 1904. Two years ago, Captain Archie Curtis lost his friends, fingers, and future to a terrible military accident. Alone, purposeless and angry, Curtis is determined to discover if he and his comrades were the victims of fate, or of sabotage. Curtis's search takes him to an isolated, ultra-modern country house, where he meets and instantly clashes with fellow guest Daniel da Silva. Effete, decadent, foreign, and all-too-obviously queer, the sophisticated poet is everything the straightforward British officer fears and distrusts. As events unfold, Curtis realizes that Daniel has his own secret intentions. And there's something else they share-a mounting sexual tension that leaves Curtis reeling. As the house party's elegant facade cracks to reveal treachery, blackmail and murder, Curtis finds himself needing clever, dark-eyed Daniel as he has never needed a man before... Warning: Contains explicit male/male encounters, ghastly historical attitudes, and some extremely stiff upper lips.

The Actor and the Earl by Rebecca Cohen (Three book series, w/Sebastian playing his own twin sister in all three.)

- Elizabethan actor Sebastian Hewel takes his bow at the proscenium only to embark on the role of a lifetime. When his twin sister, Bronwyn, reneges on the arrangement to marry Anthony Redbourn, Earl of Crofton, Sebastian reluctantly takes her place. At nineteen, Sebastian knows his days as a leading lady are numbered, but with this last performance, he hopes to restore his family’s name and pay off his late father’s debts. Never mind the danger of losing his head should he be discovered.He didn’t expect Anthony to be so charming and alluring—not to mention shrewd. While he applauds Sebastian’s plan, Anthony offers a mutually beneficial arrangement instead. Sebastian will need every drop of talent he has to survive with both his head and his heart intact, because this is the best part he’s ever had.

You Must Remember This: A Gay Retelling of Casablanca by John Michael Curlovich

- You Must Remember This is an homage to the classic film Casablanca on the 75th anniversary of the film’s release in America. It is the height of World War II. Frank Chandler is an American GI who has been separated from the army on a “blue discharge.” Along with his musician friend and sometime lover Dan Jackson, he finds himself in Marrakesh (only a short distance away from Casablanca), an international city where every kind of pleasure is easily available. But Marrakesh is also a city of danger. The Nazis are establishing themselves there, and their ominous presence means life is fraught with peril. Then Lilli, a beautiful, mysterious woman from Frank’s past, shows up unexpectedly, and he finds himself confronted with the hardest choice of his life. Lilli’s presence stirs emotions he thought he had buried. Yet there is still the city—and its men—and the thousand pleasures it offers… Should Frank go with Lilli and try to make a “normal” life with her? Or should he follow what he increasingly believes to be his true nature? That is the dramatic conflict at the heart of You Must Remember This.

My Lord, Lady, and Gentleman - Book Three of the Surrey SFS series by Nicola Davidson (m/m/f)

- Welcome to the Surrey Sexual Freedom Society - where unconventional and uninhibited ladies and gentlemen discuss all matters erotic... Estranged from his aristocratic family for choosing art over a third son’s proper path, Mr. Clayton Irving lives in wretched circumstances. His only joys are his friends and an extraordinary talent for sensual portraits, until the perfect opportunity arises: paint ton empress Lady Susanna Fenton. All his financial woes gone…if he can hide his fierce craving for her—and even more forbidden—her husband Lord Joseph Fenton.

In the eyes of the world the Fentons have it all: staggering wealth, position, and a caring union. Yet their smiles hide a marriage broken by secrets and pretense. The wicked portrait is a last effort to save it, and Susanna and Joseph soon discover that sinfully handsome Clayton is key to a passionate and happy new start for them all. But secrets always reveal themselves, and those who break the rules are punished. Can an unconventional ménage truly defy all for love?

The Bohemian and the Banker by Bonnie Dee and Summer Devon

- A night lost in Paris finds two hearts changed forever. Sent to Paris on business, Nigel Warren doesn’t quite understand why his colleagues’ eyes twinkle as they tell him to meet them at a local night spot. When he discovers it’s a drag cabaret and his acquaintances aren’t there, he realizes he’s the butt of a joke. Yet he finds himself quite undone by a singer dressed in an elegant gown, crooning a spellbinding ballad. It’s not unusual for Jay, a former Londoner, to bring a new “friend” home from the cabaret, but he’s never had a guest quite like Nigel, whose straitlaced manner hides an unexpected passionate streak. One romantic night on a rooftop under starry skies, followed by an afternoon enjoying the excitement of the 1901 Paris Exposition, bonds these opposites in a way neither can forget—even after they part. Their spark reignites when Jay comes to London, but he’s not sure he can go back to hiding his true self, not even for the sake of love…unless Nigel is willing to shed his cloak of staid respectability and take a leap of faith.

Robby Riverton: Mail Order Bride by Eli Easton

- Being a fugitive in the old west shouldn’t be this much fun. The year is 1860. Robby Riverton is a rising star on the New York stage. But he witnesses a murder by a famous crime boss and is forced to go on the run--all the way to Santa Fe. When he still hasn't ditched his pursuers, he disguises himself as a mail order bride he meets on the wagon train. Caught between gangsters that want to kill him, and the crazy, uncouth family of his "intended", Robby's only ally is a lazy sheriff who sees exactly who Robby is -- and can't resist him. Trace Crabtree took the job as sheriff of Flat Bottom because there was never a thing going on. And then Robby Riverton showed up. Disguised as a woman. And betrothed to Trace’s brother. If that wasn’t complication enough, Trace had to find the man as appealing as blueberry pie. He urges Robby to stay undercover until the danger has passed. But a few weeks of having Robby-Rowena at the ranch, and the Crabtree family will never be the same again. Damn, what a kerfuffle. If only Trace can get rid of the fugitive while hanging on to his own stupid heart.

A Brush with Darkness by Erastes

- Florence, 1875 After making a grisly discovery one night, I needed proof that there was still goodness in the world. I never dreamt it would come to me during my next commission—with a subject whose very name means light... Yuri was glorious in his otherworldly beauty, surrounded by a bright halo of iridescence, but I detected a fierce darkness lurking underneath the surface. Sketching all night, I could hardly wait to capture his likeness in a painting. For Yuri has stimulated not only my creative urges, but my sexual ones as well. His very presence infuses me with joy and passion, but what will happen if my patron should discover our trysts? Dependent on his good graces, I can't afford to lose his support. But I fear the time will soon come when I must choose between restoring my family's fortunes and obeying the temptation of the muse before me... Previously published as Chiaroscuro, newly revised by author.

The Matinee Idol by Owen Keehnen

- LOVE IN THE SILENT FILM ERA... At the height of the roaring 1920s, Raymond Richmond leaves Iowa and heads for Hollywood with dreams of silent film stardom in his head. In Los Angeles, he meets Brick, the ruggedly handsome cowboy of his dreams. Soon the two are a couple. When Raymond film career takes off, he is pressured to choose between stardom and Brick. Afraid of passing up his dream, Raymond chooses his career. As Raymond’s star ascends, he attempts to fill the void Brick has left in a number of ways. Eventually, his career begins to suffer and shortly after the advent of talkies, Raymond hits rock bottom. Desperate and alone, he is prostituting himself to feed his addiction to alcohol. But fate intervenes and reunites Raymond with Brick. However, Brick carries deep wounds from their past as well. Can the former lovers overcome the demons and betrayal of the past and find happiness once again? Spanning over a decade, Owen Keehnen’s The Matinee Idol is a timeless tale about second chances and the redemptive power of love.

Convincing the Secretary - Book Two of the London Legal series by Ava March (Included due to Edward’s true calling.)

- Business and pleasure is a mix no gentleman should consider. Lord Grayson Holloway goes after what he wants—be it in the law office on his clients’ behalf or in the bedchamber. His new position as partner puts him closer to achieving his goal of becoming the most successful solicitor in London. There’s just one problem—his new secretary. Broad of shoulder yet mild of manner, Edward tempts Gray like no other. Yet the young man barely notices him. Edward Fenton tries to be a good secretary, but being in Lord Grayson’s hard, commanding presence rouses Edward’s most forbidden desires. Wicked, naughty desires no gentleman should consider giving in to, let alone with his new employer. Gray is more than willing to mix business with pleasure. But convincing Edward to take a chance on a future with him? That might be the most challenging case Gray has ever taken on. Warning: Includes buttoned-up gentlemen who become undone, improper use of a desk, spankings, and a big bad lord who has a soft spot for his virgin secretary.

A Wager of Love by Katherine Marlowe (Review pending, but this is included, because Gilbert and Laurence have long conversations about poetry and philosophy, and they do a little acting in pursuit of their goal. This was a delightful book, using the thoughts and concepts of the time period to great effect.

- Laurence Aberforth has never been in love. The first time he meets the impulsive and charming Gilbert Heckwith, he accepts a wager as to whether or not true love exists in the world. Amidst the playful flirtation of their new friendship, they explore the concept of love through philosophy and poetry, and the two of them ultimately find the proof of their wager in each other. Clean romance, no cheating, no cliffhangers, standalone novella.

Such a Dance by Kate McMurray

- New York City, 1927. Eddie Cotton is a talented song-and-dance man with a sassy sidekick, a crowd-pleasing act, and a promising future on Broadway. What he doesn’t have is someone to love. Being gay in an era of prohibition and police raids, Eddie doesn’t have many opportunities to meet men like himself—until he discovers a hot new jazz club for gentlemen of a certain bent...and sets eyes on the most seductive, and dangerous, man he’s ever seen. Lane Carillo is a handsome young Sicilian who looks like Valentino—and works for the Mob. He’s never hidden his sexuality from his boss, which is why he was chosen to run a private night club for men. When Lane spots Eddie at the bar, it’s lust at first sight. Soon, the unlikely pair are falling hard and fast—in love. But when their whirlwind romance starts raising eyebrows all across town, Lane and Eddie have to decide if their relationship is doomed…or something special worth fighting for.

The First Act by Vanessa Mulberry

- April 1594. William Moodie thinks he’s in love with celebrated actor Richard Brasyer. When Brasyer’s playing company, Goldfox’s Men, comes to town, William is only too willing to leave his country life for the opportunities of the theater and a life in London. Determined to become Richard’s apprentice, William seeks to impress his mentor with his acting—and please him in bed.Meanwhile, Richard struggles to escape his past as a spy and disentangle himself from the manipulations of his former master and ex-lover, Bennett Goldfox. Swearing off a relationship with his new apprentice proves difficult for Richard, as William uses all his youthful charms to seduce him. When Bennett’s life is threatened, Richard is lured back into the game for one final mission, and he and William travel to Cambridge to hunt down a list of traitors to the Crown.In the midst of danger and deception, Richard and William come to truly see each other, faults and all, and realize their feelings run deeper than either expected.

Palace Dog by RE Nelson

- In April 1975, as the government in Saigon is falling, Michael Andrews prepares to make his way back to Vietnam to find the love he was forced to leave. But Michael’s journey begins four years earlier. He joins the Air Force to keep out of the Army and out of Vietnam, but his first assignment is teaching English in Saigon to members of the Vietnamese military in an Army program called Palace Dog. As an artist, and a man, before his time in Vietnam, Michael found life lonely and unsatisfying. In the midst of war, Michael searches for direction and meaning. He ultimately finds love and hope with Thao, a young Vietnamese art student, only to have their already uncertain future wrenched from them when he is pulled out of the country. For Michael, his return in 1975 is inevitable and without question, though the outcome he hopes for is anything but assured.

The Viscount and the Artist by Alyson Pearce (The Eccentrics Book 1) (Review pending, but this was a lovely surprise. I expected a slap-dash May/December romance, but these characters were actually worked out, and Jeremy stays true to his convictions in spite of everything working against him. Andrew has a crisis, but they work through it together.)

- Andrew Cardwell is a man driven by duty to his country and to his family. After the death of his uncle, he’s determined to provide security and stability for his family as the new Viscount Cardwell—even if that means marrying and producing an heir. Surprising himself, Andrew decides to sponsor a young artist named Jeremy for the season, to help him find a patron. What he doesn’t anticipate is how well Jeremy fits in his bed…and his life. Jeremy Leighton knows what it’s like to be a disappointment. The only son of a vicar, he’s refused to follow the path his father set for him, choosing his passion for art, instead. He accepts Andrew’s proposal, hoping to prove to his father—and himself—that he can succeed as an artist. After spending time with Andrew in and out of bed, Jeremy struggles not to fall for the damaged viscount, knowing the season will likely end in Andrew’s engagement. Between a meddling cousin, a widow on the hunt for a new husband, and their own doubts about the relationship, how can Andrew and Jeremy shed the expectations of others to find true happiness?

Juliana by Vanda (f/f)

- New York City, 1941. Alice “Al” Huffman and her childhood friends are fresh off the potato farms of Long Island and bound for Broadway. Al’s plans for stage success are abruptly put on hold when she’s told she has no talent. As she gets a job to pay for acting classes, Al settles into a normal life with her friends and a boyfriend. It all changes when she meets Juliana.A singer on the brink of stardom, Juliana is everything Al isn’t: glamorous, talented, and queer. The farm girl is quickly enthralled, experiencing thoughts and feelings she never realized were possible. Al finds herself slipping between two worlds: the gay underground and the “normal” world of her childhood friends. It’s a balancing act she can handle until the two worlds begin to collideIn a city bursting with change, can Alice find what she was looking for all along?Juliana: Volume 1: 1941-1944 is a captivating work of LGBT historical romance. If you like extensively researched settings, spell-binding storytelling, and characters you can’t help but fall for, then you’ll love the first book in award-winning playwright Vanda’s new Juliana series.

Nightingale by Aleksandr Voinov

- In Nazi-occupied Paris, most Frenchmen tread warily, but gay nightclub singer Yves Lacroix puts himself in the spotlight with every performance. As a veteran of France’s doomed defense, a survivor of a prison camp, and a “degenerate,” he knows he’s a target. His comic stage persona disguises a shamed, angry heart and gut-wrenching fear for a sister embedded in the Resistance. Yet Yves ascends the hierarchy of Parisian nightlife to become a star, attracting the attention—and the protection—of the Nazi Oberst Heinrich von Starck. To complicate matters further, young foot soldier Falk Harfner’s naïve adoration of Yves threatens everything he’s worked for. So does Aryan ideologue von Grimmstein, rival to von Starck, who sees something “a bit like a Jew” in Yves. When an ill-chosen quip can mean torture at the hands of the Gestapo, being the acclaimed Nightingale of Paris might cost Yves his music and his life.

Ardent by Heloise West

- In the village of Torrenta, master painter Morello has created a color that mimics the most expensive pigment of all, the crimson red. Master Zeno, from strife-ridden Medici Florence, tells him the color gives him a competitive advantage – but Morello must be careful. Fraud is ever-present in the dye and pigment markets. As they work together in Torrenta, Morello falls hard for Zeno’s assistant, Benedetto Tagliaferro, a young man of uncommon beauty and intelligence. Benedetto is still fixed on his old lover, the master painter Leo Guisculo, and cannot return Morello’s affections. But when Leo dies in a terrible accident, it’s to Morello that Zeno and Benedetto turn for help. And Morello soon finds that in Florence, every surface hides layers of intrigue.

#lgbtqia romance #historical romance

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oneiloneil28-blog · 6 years ago

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Is Futures Investing Difficult?

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everydayontrip · 3 years ago

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I posted 4,395 times in 2021

66 posts created (2%)

4329 posts reblogged (98%)

For every post I created, I reblogged 65.6 posts.

I added 97 tags in 2021

#spotify - 20 posts

#drake - 13 posts

#hip hop - 13 posts

#playlist - 10 posts

#girl - 9 posts

#rap - 8 posts

#chill - 7 posts

#rapper - 6 posts

#post malone - 6 posts

#tumblr - 5 posts

Longest Tag: 30 characters

#me and earl and the dying girl

My Top Posts in 2021

Vans Office

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⁝ CHILL HIP HOP Chill Rap Vibes / Hip Hop / wrap → Sunset chill or daybreak made for Tumblr spending time, Rainy day Hip Hop chill in evening or break. Hit rap music... / Drake, Post Malone, G-Eazy, ASAP, Lil Wayne, Eminem, XXXTentacion, 60 East, Travis Scott, Machine Gun Kelly, Frank Ocean, A$AP Rocky, Tyler

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Get your Tumblr 2021 Year in Review →

#my 2021 tumblr year in review #your tumblr year in review #Spotify

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mattyunijourneybrief12 · 4 years ago

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Week 4 Session

To begin the session after gathering into the main room, we broke into small groups to discuss 4 design questions:

1. What is generative research?

2. What is formative research?

3. How designers can recognise and minimise personal bias?

4. What is the role of analysis and synthesis on design?

Our answers (Group 3 - Me, Devon and Emily):

Generative Research is where iterative design stems from - iterative design is a process of prototyping, analyzing, and refining a product/process. Generative Research helps researchers understand it’s users better - In order to find solutions. Generative research is having the goal to enhance the ‘good’ in our world, and also starts with new technologies and opportunities in the market. These new technologies can be generators to questions we can answer.

Formative research is research that comes before the project has been designed and implemented

Make better selections when choosing groups to gain feedback from - using only people you know/are friends with can make the results biased towards a certain result. Use completely open questions - Don’t write a question that expects a specific answer. Review your findings with your peers.

The role of analysis in design is to generate insights that drive development of new products. The role of design synthesis is to generate solutions that act on these insights.

After discussing as a group, we gathered back into the main room to discuss our answers.

Generative Research:

Analysis, Synthesis, Problem, Questions

Creative Leap

This is what I’m doing

The whole point of generative research is to get the creative leap going.

Then we get to formative research

Ideration, prototype, something you can test, so paper prototype then to high fidelity prototype. Project gets refined

Design Research Lecture from the tutor

Wicked Problems is an interesting concept that

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moviesandmania · 5 years ago

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Camp Cuddly Pines Powertool Massacre - USA, 2005 - reviews

Camp Cuddly Pines Powertool Massacre – USA, 2005 – reviews

‘You’ll be scared shirtless’

Camp Cuddly Pines Powertool Massacre is a 2005 American adult comedy-horror film released by Wicked Pictures. The movie stars Stormy Daniels, Jessica Drake, Eric Masterson, Voodoo, Tommy Gunn, Keri Sable, Devon Michaels, Nicole Sheridan and Rita Faltoyano.

The film is a comedic parody of horror films of its time, with a cross between The Texas Chain Saw Massacre and

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#2005 #Camp Cuddly Pines #Camp Cuddly Pines Powertool Massacre #film #Jessica Drake #Mike Horner #movie #Randy Spears #slasher #Stormy Daniels #Tommy Gunn

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hollywoodgothique · 6 years ago

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Poe (prostrate) in limbo with his literary executor – or is that executioner? – Griswold

The Assassination of Edgar Allan Poe is a catchy title, but a more accurate one might be “The Attempted Assassination of Poe’s Legacy.” Beginning in limbo, with Poe offered a choice between surcease of sorrow and literary immortality, Devon and John Armstrong’s immersive theatrical production cleverly combines elements of A Christmas Carol, The Last Temptation of Christ, and Tamara (the great grand dame of immersive walking plays); there may even be echos of Amadeus and The Crucible (though I could be stretching a point here).

Staged on the grounds of the Heritage Square Museum, the play takes viewers time-travelling into Poe’s tragic past, portrayed in vignettes occurring simultaneously in and around various Victorian mansions. The question on the table is whether Poe was a victim of circumstance or of his own self-destructive impulses. Based on that answer, Poe will decide whether to repent or to embrace the suffering that inspired his greatest artistic achievements. Is it better to lead a tranquil life and be forgotten or to live in misery and become (figuratively) immortal?

The Assassination of Edgar Allan Poe Review: Narrative Labyrinth

Poe’s stepfather greets the audience.

The immersive experience of The Assassination of Edgar Allan Poe begins before the play itself, when audience members arrive at Heritage Square Museum and find a locked entrance with a sign indicating that the gates to Baltimore will open at 7:30pm. At the appointed time, a character in period costume unlocks the gate and begins checking names. Inside, you are given a hooded cloak, which helps you feel like a participant even while maintaining a certain anonymity – a (mostly) invisible observer.

First, you encounter John Allan, Poe’s stepfather, who importunes you to speak to his wife, giving him an alibi for last night; he claims to have been meeting a business acquaintance who has left town, but Mrs. Allan has reason to believe he was with another woman. Though Allan’s affairs will afford a point of recrimination for his stepson to use against him later, this vignette is not so much a plot point as a scene-setter, easing the audience into the experience.

After your encounter with the Mr. and Mrs. Allan, you are directed toward the church at the far end of Heritage Square, where Poe lies as if in death, awakened by a pair of characters, Moran and Griswold, who offer competing interpretations of his life, offering salvation or immortality of a sort, depending on which of them he chooses to believe. Whether he – or we – should believe either is an open question, as both men promulgated several falsehoods about Poe after his death.

The rest of the play consists of Moran and Griswold presenting scenes from Poe’s life meant to sway the author rather like Scrooge in Dickens’ famous story of redemption. They lead the audience to different locations where the action is taking place, acting like story guides in the Wicked Lit Halloween Theatre Festival. There is a difference, however; unlike Wicked Lit, which assigns its audience to a guide, The Assassination of Edgar Allan Poe is more akin to Tamara, inviting its audience to choose which scenes to view, creating a sort of narrative labyrinth in which each viewer’s experience may be quite different. The challenge of this approach is that fragments the dramatic through-line; the play addresses this by staging key scenes outside the church, with everyone present.

In one scene staged before the church, Poe mourns his wife’s death.

An additional challenge is that it involves much perambulating around Heritage Square. Though the church is used as a “central’ hub around which the action takes place, it is actually located at near the far end of the grounds, which means that, depending on which scenes you visit, you could end up hiking back and forth over the almost entire length of the gravel walkway several times. This in itself is not particularly daunting, but seating is at a minimum, and the historically preserved Victorian mansions are not equipped with modern air-conditioning, so you may end up standing in some rather stuff rooms while the actors do their best to engage your fatigued mind and body.

The Assassination of Edgar Allan Poe Review: Post-Modern Poe

The killer in “Imp of the Perverse”

The majority of the vignettes detail incidents from Poe’s life: an argument with his stepfather, a proposal to a wealth widow, a physical altercation with Griswold. However, the most interesting is less about his life than his art, illuminating the literary techniques he used to achieve the dramatic effects in his stories. We see condensed adaptations of “The Masque of the Red Death” and “The Imp of the Perverse,” the latter of which is repeatedly interrupted by a young version of Poe, explaining that he is inverting the tradition template laid down by Aristotle, starting with what would normally be the catharsis (the criminal captured), focusing not on the apprehension of the guilty but rather the character’s state of mind, which provides insight the darker side of everyone’s psyche.

The result feels very much like a theatrical version of John Barth’s short story “Lost in the Funhouse,” in which the author repeatedly interrupts the narrative to explain three-act structure, rising tension, and other techniques, which the story is either using or subverting. It’s a fascinating post-modern approach to Poe’s work, illuminating intriguing insights that would remain elusive in a straight-forward dramatic reenactment.

The Assassination of Edgar Allan Poe Review: Conclusion

The details of Poe’s tragic life have been covered so often and at such great length that The Assassination of Edgar Allan Poe at first seems to be treading over well-worn ground. Ultimately, however, the play is less about the author’s life than his legacy, asking questions about whether misery and suffering truly are required to inspire genius – and if this is true, is it worth the price?

Rather like Jesus in Nikos Kazantzakis’ novel The Last Temptation of Christ, Poe must decide whether to embrace his suffering and achieve literary immortality or wipe away the past in order to achieve peace. That decision plays out rather like John Proctor’s refusal relent in The Crucible – a self-destructive form of moral courage in which a character stays true to himself rather than surrender to an easy way out.

From our modern perspective, it is perhaps too easy to take Poe’s legacy for granted, but for a time that legacy was in doubt, thanks to Griswold, who (here portrayed like an envious Salieri) did everything he could to defame the author after his death, hoping to turn the public away with tales of a drunken madman. Ironically, the result was the opposite of that intended, creating the myth of the tortured artist who poured his pain onto the page, creating work that has endured the test of time.

Though viewers may occasionally feel lost in the labyrinth of The Assassination of Edgar Allan Poe‘s multiple story lines, ultimately these forking paths converge onto a supremely satisfying catharsis that make the journey worthwhile. Poe is neither white-washed nor black-balled, but his work endures for our benefit, inspiring interpretations and reinterpretations – including this very play itself. You may know the facts of Poe’s life, but here they are shaped and molded into something new that makes sense out of what might seem senseless tragedy. Is great art worth the cost of suffering – not only for Poe but for those around him? As his wife Virginia explains: “If you want to live well, marry a banker. If you want to live forever, marry a poet.”

Heritage Square Museum stands in for Baltimore.

Review: The Assassination of Edgar Allan Poe The Assassination of Edgar Allan Poe is a catchy title, but a more accurate one might be "The Attempted Assassination of Poe's Legacy." Beginning in limbo, with Poe offered a choice between surcease of sorrow and literary immortality, Devon and John Armstrong's immersive theatrical production cleverly combines elements of…

#Heritage Square Museum Archive #Immersive Theatre #Scary Plays & Mysteries

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